Familiarity
by forbidden donut
Summary: Two New Warriors find their friendship take on a new form as they ponder love and loss during Civil War.
1. Part 1

**Familiarity - part one**

By Forbidden Donut

* * *

Summary: Two New Warriors find their friendship take on a new form as they ponder love and loss.

Author Note: Set during the events of Civil War, this is an old story and I've given it a bit of a rewrite.

Disclaimer: Characters not owned by me nor do I profit from their use.

* * *

In no small way, they were all being blamed for the actions of their dead team mates. He wanted to be in the thick of the action but something held him back, a feeling of being watched, being judged, being held to account. In a moment of weakness and paranoia he'd asked the other Warriors about it, and they'd all admitted that they felt the same eyes on them.

So Justice stood watching from the rail as the Secret Avengers returned from the mission to rescue Captain America. They had come out badly in this lastest sortie. Lost people to the other side, lost people to SHIELD, and then there was Goliath.

Debrii stood close to him and they watched silently as Captain America rallied the troops from a seat he perched on while they healed his wounds.

"It's not fair. I didn't do a damn thing but they're treating me like I killed those people, those kids."

He didn't look at her, despite on some level agreeing with her sentiment. Debrii was not a New Warrior he knew well and there was no camaraderie between them, not like he'd shared with Night Thrasher, Nova, Namorita, Firestar and Speedball. The first Warriors had been more than just team mates, they'd been his family when he'd needed one, and no team since had felt the same.

Despite the fact she was _not_ his team mate, there were many responses he could have made, any number would have been friendly and supportive, but he was tired and numb and unable to share even a trace of sympathy with her. He just didn't believe her unhappiness was driven by the same emotions as his.

Ultra Girl chose that moment to appear between them. "Life's unfair, Deb," someone muttered behind them. "Get over yourself, other people are hurting more than you."

"The hell? Who do you think you are to tell me that, Barbie?" said Debrii to the blonde Californian.

Justice sighed and stepped in before it came to anything. All of the Warriors were on edge. More than any of the other heroes realised or seemed to care. "Not here, not _now_," he said sharply under his breath to the two girls. "We don't need anyone seeing the New Warriors scrap. Just step away from each other and cool off, both of you."

He walked away feeling their eyes on his back.

Later, he sought out an unoccupied bed but slept uneasily, visions of his friends playing out parts from horrific scenarios in his mind. He woke with a cry suspended on his lips which he quickly repressed into a low gasp. The room had been half full when he'd first come in but now it was mostly empty.

"Are you okay? You seemed a bit on edge earlier..." Suzanna Sherman sat cross-legged on the next bed, watching him.

"Just tired. I'm sorry if I was a little abrupt." He sat up and rubbed his face.

She shook her head, "No, it was a fair comment. It's good someone is policing us. Better you than Cap." She gave him a wry smile.

He nodded. Encouraged, she unfolded her legs and stood up, moving to sit next to him, bumping his hip so he would move over. "Trouble sleeping?" she asked.

"I can sleep... it's just the dreams that..." His voice trailed off. She placed her hands on either side of his face, thumbs on his cheeks and slid the partial mask down, his dark hair tousled from sleep and his face tired and troubled. He looked disapprovingly at her.

"Suzanna..."

Her smile turned slightly mischievous. "I like it when you say my name, not too many men call me that." She leaned sideways until her lips were very close to his right ear, their cheeks millimetres apart, then whispered in his ear, "I feel like you're scolding me, Vance. I'm a grown woman, not _that _much younger than you so you make me feel a little naughty when you say my name that way and I like it, I like it _a lot_."

He blushed and took a breath to reply but she put a finger on his lips, shaking her head, cutting off anything he might have said.

"Turn around so I can rub your shoulders, you're so tense."

Vance turned his back to her as ordered, mostly to hide how confused that confession had made him feel. He'd been told more than once that he wore his emotions too readily, visible to everyone and anyone. It wasn't so long ago that Angel had broken his heart, Suzanna was as different from Angel as any woman could be. She rubbed his shoulders tenderly, using hands strong enough to crack his body in half to sooth the tension from his strung out muscles. He closed his eyes, yielding to the small intimacy, and she ran her slim fingers through his hair, massaging his temples.

"You knew Debrii was getting to me..." he said suddenly, feeling foolish for not having seen it earlier.

"This is what you're thinking about? My touch must be slipping." She snorted in amusement then murmured, "It's pretty obvious you and Rage are going through hell. I'm just trying to run a little interference where I can."

She slid her arms around him, resting her hands lightly on his stomach. He didn't push her away but nor did he invite further contact so she pulled him closer, feeling him resist, until her cheek pressed up against his broad shoulders.

"Vance, let me in. Tell me what you're thinking."

He shook his head. "Can't."

Sitting back, she urged him to turn so she could look him in the face and see the raw emotion there.

"I want to help. I want to do more than help..."

He took her into his arms, embracing her benignly. "Suzanna... Suzie, I'm not ready yet. I'm fond of you, it's just..."

She took his face in her hands and drew him down, kissing him. He tried to jerk away but she held him until he responded finally, returning a kiss of his own.

"Was that so hard?" she said, smiling.

"You have no idea," he murmured, a slight smile playing at the corners of his mouth.


	2. Part 2

**Familiarity - part two**

By Forbidden Donut

* * *

Summary: Two New Warriors find their friendship take on a new form as they ponder love and loss.

Author Note: Set during the events of Civil War, this is an old story and I've given it a bit of a rewrite.

Disclaimer: Characters not owned by me nor do I profit from their use.

* * *

_"...I thought Spidey was so far up his butt you couldn't see his feet anymore?_" Vance shook his head in disbelief as they walked away from the medical suite.

Suzie grinned. "What? I was just saying what everyone in the room was thinking."

"Really? _I_ was thinking how lucky it was for you that Spider-Man was pretty much unconscious. He's been known to web people's lips together."

"That's a superhero urban legend if I ever heard one.. She pursed her lips into a kissy mouth. "You would've picked the webbing off though right? Right? These deserve some lip service right?" she asked, pouting lustily up at him.

"Yes. No. Maybe. Oh I don't know..." He said distractedly, her lips did look pretty good... He caught himself leaning towards her, then jerked back. "I still don't think it was that funny."

She stopped pouting and pulled a face.

"It's not really a joking matter, Suzie."

She grabbed his arm, stopping him in the middle of the corridor. "Wait, Vance. Wait! Look, it's just I thought the Warriors gig would be good experience that could go on my super hero resume. I didn't expect my identity to be compromised by a guilt stricken team-mate. Spider-Man is... _was _one of Iron Man's chief supporters... Why does he deserve any sympathy from us?"

"I don't know about Peter Parker, but Spider-Man has more than earned our respect and trust. And _yes_, our compassion. Tony can be very persuasive when he sets his mind to it, I don't doubt he had a major role in convincing Spidey to back the registration act. You know, the New Warriors stand unique here amongst these guys. We've had our identities exposed twice now, both times with terrible repercussions. If we can't extend our support to someone who truly needs it, who's going through the same thing..." He shrugged.

"Spider-Man _chose _to unmask, whatever his reasons. I didn't."

"Aren't you listening to a word I'm saying?" He looked almost disappointed. "It eats me up inside that Carlton exposed so many New Warriors before we could stop him. That we had to chase him down like criminals because we couldn't shut him down legally."

"I know." She let go of his arm and stepped back. "Rage thinks..."

He sighed softly. "Rage is still grieving. Everything he thinks and says is tainted by his loss."

Suzie gave him a wry smile. "Oh yeah? I noticed he's not the only one."

Vance swallowed it down - the pain, the loss, and backed away from her. He didn't want to talk about his grief, not with Suzie, not with anyone. "I-I have to be somewhere. Try to stay out of trouble." He turned to walk away but hesitated when she spoke again.

"You're going to have to trust someone, Vance, or all that grief and unhappiness is going to come out in the wrong place, at the wrong time. We're all that's left of the New Warriors, we've got to stick together. Isn't that what you said after Hindsight outed us? Start by trusting me."

He hunched his shoulders a little. "I do trust you, Suzie, it's just - I'm not ready to talk yet. Please stop pushing me on this. I'll see you later." He left her standing alone in the corridor.

"I love you, Vance Astrovik," she whispered to his retreating back.

**~**

Elvin threw his hands up in despair. "And you walked away? Suzie practically throws herself at you, showing some kissy kissy face, tries to comfort you and you reject her? Where is your head? I mean seriously?"

"Elvin..." Vance warned, scowling. He leaned against the wall in the empty meeting room that doubled as the Secret Avenger's war room, arms crossed.

The younger hero chuckled. "Sorry man, but you're over-thinking this. It's not like she said she loved you or anything. Just talk to her."

"Maybe."

"Maybe my ass. You go back and you beg her to comfort you. If she'd offered to comfort me, I would've..."

Vance flashed his friend a look of annoyance.

"What is the problem, Vance? She's hot, she's single, would it be such a problem if she wants to get in your..."

"ELVIN."

The younger man put his hands up defensively and smiled sheepishly.

Vance sighed explosively. "I'm not blind! I _know _she's had a crush on me for a long time. I ignored it when I was with Angel, you know how she was about other girls. And the truth is, I care about Suzie, I really do, but... I want to know that this isn't still an infatuation."

Elvin leaned against the wall next to Vance, crossing his arms as well. "Fair enough I guess, but it seems to me, all _she _wants is to be there for you. To be a friend. Man, if you hadn't been there to support me, at the funeral and then afterwards, to talk to.... I don't know what would've happened." He looked down at his feet.

The door opened and other heroes began to file in, giving the two New Warriors odd looks. Vance muttered sideways. "Guess they forgot to invite us to this meeting. About the other thing, I'm your friend and your team mate, I'll always have your back, Elvin."

"Okay, do _me _a favour then. Talk to Suzie." Elvin patted Vance on the shoulder and left him to his thoughts.

Cap looked up from the table. "Justice, a word."

**~**

Debrii looked up as Elvin and Suzie came in. "What's going on? Why'd Justice ask us to meet here?" They shrugged.

"No idea," said Suzie.

"Don't look at me," muttered Elvin.

The door slammed open with a shove that was bare inches from ripping it off it's hinges and transforming it into a pile of splinters. It shut with enough force to alert every superhero in the building that the resident telekinetic was extremely unhappy.

"Whoa, Vance, buddy, get a lid on it." Elvin joked, though his voice was edged with nervous tension.

Vance paced for a few minutes, trying to get his anger back under control. His hands kept clenching and unclenching.

Suzie watched him with concern. "What's wrong, Vance?" she asked eventually.

He stopped and looked at her and she flinched away from the ferocity in his eyes. "Cap is planning the final assault on the Baxter Building."

"Why's this the first we've heard of it?" said Elvin sharply.

Vance finally released his pent up emotion and seemed to collapse in on himself. "He ordered us to go to another Secret Avengers safe house and await further instructions from him and him alone. That's it, we're out of it."

"Why?" Elvin slammed his fist into the wall, smashing through the plaster and brick. He rubbed his fist angrily. "Does he think we give the side a bad rep or something?"

"Because he doesn't want any of the former New Warrior's involved in the fighting. Luke Cage told me that, he thought we had a right to know."

"What a crock," Debrii growled.

"So are we going to follow his orders?" asked Suzie.

Vance looked up and nodded. He looked tired and defeated. "For now."


End file.
